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The snow monsters of Riisitunturi

Spruces that vanish under snow, and why some days they look bare.

The short answer

The snow monsters are spruces on the Riisitunturi fells weighed down by a thick layer of snow, called tykky in Finnish and crown snow-load in English. Metsähallitus writes that the crown snow starts to develop in October at the latest, and House of Lapland names January and February as the best time to photograph it. How heavy the snow is on the day of your tour depends on the weather, and operators say it cannot be guaranteed.

Tours on this page
Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip
Wild about Lapland · 8 hours, back in Rovaniemi around 16:00 Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip
★ 4.8 (338) from €190
Book now
Highlights or Premium Day Trip
Arctic Safari Guides · 6.5 to 8 hours Highlights or Premium Day Trip
★ 4.8 (24) from €100
Book now
Fell Hike with Edited Photos
Beyond Arctic · 9 hours Fell Hike with Edited Photos
★ 4.8 (134) from €140
Book now
Compare all 3 options

See which Riisitunturi tours still have seats on your dates

The tours below keep a guide with you on the fell among the snow-covered spruces. Arctic Safari Guides writes in plain words that the tykky cannot be guaranteed. The full list of tours is in the comparison.

PhotoTourGuidePickupWalkGearPrice p.p.ReviewsBook
Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip
Wild about Lapland		YesOutside centre onlyabout 4 kmClothing, boots€190★ 4.8 (338)Book now
Fell Hike with Edited Photos
Beyond Arctic		PhotographerHotelabout 4 kmClothing, boots€140★ 4.8 (134)Book now
Highlights or Premium Day Trip
Arctic Safari Guides		YesHotel or Scandic Pohjanhovi4–5 kmIce cleats€100★ 4.8 (24)Book now

Prices are per adult as GetYourGuide shows them when this page loads, taxes included. Where a listing sells a coach seat and a guided hike, the price shown is its cheapest option, so open the listing to see what the guided day costs.

Tours with a guide on the fell

The top of each card shows guide or coach and the walking distance. Open it for the full list of inclusions and the operator's health and age limits.

Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip
Wild about Lapland

Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip

A guide for the whole day, at most 8 people, winter clothing and boots included. Hotel pickup only for accommodation outside the city centre.

  • Duration: 8 hours, back in Rovaniemi around 16:00
  • Language: English
  • ✓ Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start
from €190 ★ 4.8 (338 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide
Full tour details

Highlights

  • A guide for the whole day; hotel pickup for accommodation outside the city centre, a walk of about 4 km in the park
  • Limited to 8 participants
  • Winter clothing, boots and equipment are included; snowshoes may come along
  • The guide carries a camera and takes photos of you

About this tour

The operator places Riisitunturi about 150 km east of Rovaniemi and plans roughly two hours of driving each way. In the park the group walks about 4 km to the spots where the spruces carry the heaviest snow, and the guide may bring snowshoes if the snow calls for them.

Around the walk there is a campfire with a snack, biscuits and hot drinks. Pickup times are confirmed by e-mail at least a day before and can shift with the weather.

What's included

  • Hotel pickup and drop-off for accommodation outside the city centre
  • Equipment, professional winter clothing and boots
  • Campfire snacks, biscuits and hot drinks
  • Photography
  • Professional guide
  • Taxes and fees

Know before you go

  • Some walking is involved.
  • The tour runs in all weather conditions.
  • Pickups start before the stated time; the exact time comes by e-mail at least a day before.

Not suitable for

  • People with heart problems
  • People with pre-existing medical conditions

Guide or coach, pickup, walking distance and inclusions as the operator states them on the booking page.

Highlights or Premium Day Trip
Arctic Safari Guides

Highlights or Premium Day Trip

A guide from Posio and ice cleats when the trail needs them. Highlights leaves from Scandic Pohjanhovi; Premium adds hotel pickup, a small group and a BBQ.

  • Duration: 6.5 to 8 hours
  • Language: English, Finnish, Greek, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Turkish
  • ✓ Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start
from €100 ★ 4.8 (24 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide
Full tour details

Highlights

  • Highlights (6.5 h) leaves from Scandic Pohjanhovi; Premium (8 h) picks up at your hotel; hike of about 4–5 km
  • Premium adds a small group of at most 8, a Finnish BBQ and edited photos; Highlights has a warm drink and a light snack
  • Ice cleats are handed out when the trail is icy
  • Tours in English, Spanish, French, Italian, Russian, Turkish or Greek

About this tour

The founder of Arctic Safari Guides grew up in Posio, the municipality of Riisitunturi National Park, and designed the route. The hike runs through forest towards the fell, with stops for the view and for photos; the guide can take pictures with your own phone or camera.

The operator states plainly that the snow-covered tykky trees cannot be guaranteed and that the trail may be icy. The listing calls proper winter clothing and winter boots essential, with temperatures from -5 °C to -25 °C or colder.

What's included

  • Highlights: transport from Scandic Pohjanhovi and back, guide, guided hike, warm drink and light snack, ice cleats
  • Premium: hotel pickup and drop-off in Rovaniemi, winter-equipped vehicle, group of at most 8, Finnish BBQ, edited photos; winter clothing only as a paid extra

Know before you go

  • The hike covers about 4–5 km and needs moderate fitness.
  • Proper winter clothing and winter boots are essential.
  • The tykky trees are a natural phenomenon and cannot be guaranteed.
  • Winter trails can be icy.

Guide or coach, pickup, walking distance and inclusions as the operator states them on the booking page.

Fell Hike with Edited Photos
Beyond Arctic

Fell Hike with Edited Photos

A photographer guide, 10–15 edited photos sent afterwards, warm clothing and boots, at most 8 people.

  • Duration: 9 hours
  • Language: English
  • ✓ Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start
from €140 ★ 4.8 (134 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide
Full tour details

Highlights

  • Hotel pickup and drop-off; about 4 km of hiking in the national park
  • Limited to 8 participants
  • The guide is a professional photographer; 10–15 edited photos are sent afterwards
  • Warm clothing and winter boots are included

About this tour

The group travels about two hours from Rovaniemi in a people carrier, then hikes roughly 4 km and climbs up the fell, with several stops for photos of the snow-covered forest.

Lunch is pastries and sausages grilled over a campfire. The operator describes the trail as demanding and does not take children under 8.

What's included

  • Wilderness and photography guide
  • Light lunch during the day
  • Hot drinks and snacks
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • People carrier transport
  • Warm clothing, winter boots, BBQ gear
  • 10–15 photos from the tour, sent afterwards

Know before you go

  • The trail at Riisitunturi can be demanding.

Not suitable for

  • Children under 8 years

Guide or coach, pickup, walking distance and inclusions as the operator states them on the booking page.

Tykky, crown snow-load, snow monsters

Three names for one sight. Tykky is the Finnish word, crown snow-load the English term Metsähallitus uses, and snow monsters the name in tour titles and on social media. The trees are spruces on the fells of the national park, and in a snowy winter the shape of each tree disappears under the load. Metsähallitus manages the park; this site is independent of it.

OctoberCrown snow starts to develop at the latest, according to Metsähallitus
Jan–FebBest time for photos, according to House of Lapland
FreeEntry to the national park

When the trees carry the most snow

The snow builds up through the winter. House of Lapland, the regional tourism organisation, calls January and February the best months for crown snow-load scenes. In early winter and in spring the picture changes more from day to day. Experience Tours Lapland notes that weather and snow conditions vary, especially in early winter and spring, and Lapland Activities that the weather can affect how the snow giants look. Read the best time page for daylight by month.

No tour can promise them

Arctic Safari Guides states that tykky cannot be guaranteed. A guided day on the fell still happens in thin snow, fog or wind; Wild about Lapland writes that its tour runs in all weather. Experience Tours Lapland lets you cancel a day before if the weather is unsuitable, and every tour on this site can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before the start. If the snow-covered trees are the only reason for the trip, keep an eye on the forecast and those deadlines.

Several reviewers report heavy cloud, fog or so little snow that the trees looked bare, most often on December and March trips, and two felt the operator should have warned them. Ask the operator about the current snow before you book early or late in the season.

Seeing them on the walk

Most guided walks start in the forest and climb towards the open fell, where the snow-laden spruces stand. Beyond Arctic writes that the group climbs high up the fells, Aurora Monkeys that its walk goes to the top of the hill. The trail page lists the walking distance of every tour.

Snow, cloud and fog in the reviews

Fog, cloud and missing snow in the reviewers' own words. The two critical ones felt they should have been warned; the four-star one still recommends the tour.

“The trip was nice even we were not very lucky with weather (it was too foggy to enjoy the panorama). The driver and the guide Toni was very precise and organised and gave us all info we asked for! Would recommed the tour …”
Gabriela · Slovakia · March 2026 Snow Monsters by Coach or Small Group · BookLapland
“It was very expensive for what it was. The weather conditions prior to leaving Rovaniemi were poor with extremely heavy cloud cover … Effectively we walked up a hill in the cloud and back down again in the cloud. Due to little snow not even the trees were covered like marshmallows as per all the images in your advertising …”
Julie · Australia · December 2025 Snowy Giants Small-Group Trip · Wild about Lapland
“… We were not informed that the experience would be completely different from the photos shown. There was no snow at all, and the landscape was nothing like what customers would reasonably expect when paying a high price. Weather cannot be controlled, but a professional agency should know seasonal conditions and inform clients in advance. …”
filippo · Italy · December 2025 Fell Hike with Edited Photos · Beyond Arctic

Reviews of Riisitunturi day trips, quoted from GetYourGuide.

Questions and answers

What are the snow monsters in Finland?

Spruces covered so thickly by snow that they lose their shape. In Finnish the snow is called tykky, in English crown snow-load. Riisitunturi National Park in Posio is one of the places where they form.

When can you see the snow monsters at Riisitunturi?

Metsähallitus writes that crown snow starts to develop in October at the latest. House of Lapland names January and February as the best time for photos. In early winter and spring the amount of snow varies more.

Are the snow monsters guaranteed?

No. Operators state that the snow-covered trees cannot be guaranteed, because they depend on snowfall and weather. Tours run in most weather, so check the free cancellation deadline of your booking.

Do I need a tour to see them?

No. Entry to the national park is free, and you can drive yourself or take the coach option without a guide. A guided tour adds transport, clothing on most listings and someone who knows the trail.

Related on this site

Best time to go

Months with the heaviest snow and the light in Rovaniemi.

Tours with photos

Guides who photograph you among the trees.

The trail

Walking distance and the climb to the open fell.

Pick a tour for the snow-covered trees

Guide, pickup and clothing for every tour on the home page.

Open the tour table